Gastric Bypass Malpractice

Baltimore Attorneys Helping Victims of Medical Negligence

Elective weight loss surgeries, such as gastric bypass, have become increasingly popular in Maryland and across the United States. With the rise in surgery has come an increase in medical malpractice cases as well. If you or someone close to you has suffered preventable complications following a gastric bypass surgery, you may be entitled to compensation. At Arfaa Law Group, our seasoned Baltimore medical malpractice lawyers are prepared to assist in your recovery, and this often means holding a negligent surgeon accountable for his or her actions.

What is Gastric Bypass Surgery?

With morbid obesity being a serious problem in the United States, it is no surprise that a procedure like gastric bypass has really taken off. Gastric bypass surgery is a surgical procedure that helps you lose weight by changing how your stomach and intestine handle the food that you eat. It is a complex procedure that involves stapling, banding, or re-routing the digestive system so food and its related nutrition bypass the normal route of stomach to small intestine, and are discarded as waste as opposed to being absorbed. Gastric bypass patients often experience drastic weight loss.

What Constitutes Gastric Bypass Malpractice?

Because gastric bypass surgeries are inherently dangerous, patients who suffer harm afterwards do not always have grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit. Any surgery carries the risk of complications no matter how competent and careful the surgeon is. In addition, just because a patient does not experience significant weight loss shortly after the surgery does not mean malpractice occurred. In other words, a patient cannot claim malpractice simply because he or she is unhappy with the result of the surgery.

Rather, medical malpractice occurs when a doctor causes injury or harm by failing to adhere to the expected standard of care. The “standard of care” refers to the level of care that a reasonably competent medical professional in the same speciality would have used under the same or similar circumstances. It is not enough to simply show that the doctor’s conduct departed from the standard of care; you must also show that the particular conduct in question was a direct and proximate cause of the injury. An experienced medical malpractice lawyer can help assess whether your claim may fulfill these requirements.

For example, gastric bypass surgery involves cutting the stomach to create a smaller pouch in which to deposit the food you eat. If your stomach is not properly reconstructed during the procedure, digestive fluids can leak into your abdomen causing a multitude of problems, including potentially fatal infections. In such a scenario, the surgeon would likely be liable for gastric bypass malpractice if his or her error, carelessness, or misconduct led to the leakage. In other cases, the surgeon may have failed to timely diagnose or treat leakage of gastric fluid properly, which could also form the basis of a malpractice claim. Other complications that could be indicative of malpractice include, but are not limited to: the development of post-surgery gallstones, pulmonary embolisms, excessive pain, kidney stones, difficulty breathing, and issues with blood clotting.

How Long Does an Injured Party Have to File a Lawsuit?

In Maryland, just like in every other state, a medical malpractice lawsuit must be filed in civil court within a certain time frame known as the statute of limitations. Typically, a patient is required to file a medical malpractice claim either within five years from the date of the injury or within three years from when the injury was discovered, whichever is earlier. Failure to file the claim within this legal deadline could mean being permanently barred from recovering compensation.

Work With a Trusted Medical Malpractice Lawyer in Baltimore

If you have undergone a gastric bypass procedure and are now experiencing complications, you may be entitled to compensation for your harm. At The Arfaa Law Group, our reputable and hard-working attorneys will scrutinize the facts of your case and determine the viability of your gastric bypass malpractice claim. With extensive experience in this area of law, you can rest assured that we will provide skilled legal representation and consult a seasoned team of medical experts on your behalf. We represent clients not only in Baltimore, but throughout the state of Maryland on a wide range of injury claims, including birth injury, catastrophic injury, and wrongful death. To discuss your case, call us at 410-889-1850 or contact us online.